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The Egyptian educational system is highly centralized, and is divided into three stages:
Since the extension of the free compulsory education law in 1981 to include the preparatory phase, both the primary and preparatory phases (Ages 6 through 15) have been incorporated together in what is called Basic Education. Education beyond this stage depends on the student's abilities and capacities. The Education system in Egypt is further subdivided into two systems; State System and the Azharite Religious System. Schools of the private sector are found in all phases. They are supervised by the Ministry of Education and teach State-approved curricula. But they are permitted to use additional textbooks. They differ considerably from one another in their goals and quality, as well as in the fees they charge. Roman Catholic Girl Schools are a famous and predominant type of schools, along with other church affiliated schools that provide education to all Egyptians. The Literacy rate is about 57% of the adult population. There are 20,000 primary and secondary schools with some 10 million students, 13 major universities with more than 500,000 students, and 67 teacher colleges. HISTORY In Egypt, the rhetoric of secularization and religious educational system began in 1805 . In order to avoid confronting the religious scholars and groups in the country, Muhammad Ali , the leader ofh Egypt under the Ottoman Empire , constructed a secular educational system that paralleled al-Azhar, the major educational, religious, and independent institution in Egypt and the region at that time. The main task of that educational reform of secularization was to serve the military establishment by supplying the Egyptian army with engineers, doctors, pharmacists, etc. The secular educational system, patterned on the European model, was affiliated to the Ministry of Defense until 1836 when a new educational department was established (Ali, 1985, Shaban, 1981). Schooling at all levels was provided free of charge. In addition, the state provided the cost of living for students. Until the British occupation of Egypt in 1882 , there were 270 government primary schools, 200 private European schools, and many private Egyptian schools. The British authority reduced educational expenditure, began charging tuition fees for primary and secondary schools, and consolidated, if not abolished, the higher institutes.(Ali, 1985; Ali, 1974; Shaban, 1981). Even when Egypt became a semi-independent state in 1922 and before the complete independence by the 1952 revolution, the educational system in Egypt continued to be guided by the British vision of “social elitism” and “duality” to a large extent. This duality was between elementary schools and primary schools; vocational and academic secondary schools; public and private schools; and over all secular and religious schools (Shaban, 1981; Ali & Hassan 1983). 1 After the 1952 revolution, educational reform was directed to abolish such dualisms in order to provide equal educational opportunities for all children based on their abilities and to achieve social homogeneity for the Egyptian people and to enhance secularization. The division between religious and secular education have been abolished (Shaban, 1981) and even al-Azahar has come under secular state control, an action that was criticized by religious scholars and radical Islamic groups in the country (Ibrahim, 1987) 2 . Overall, the cumulative effect of the 1950s and 1960s policies (in the context of rapid population growth, free education at all levels, government employment for any university graduate since 1964 , and series of wars 1948 , 1956 , 1967 ) is said to include a high economic cost in terms of expansionary budget and increased market distortions. PRIMARY EDUCATION Primary education used to be six years, was reduced to five years in 1988 , and restored to six years again in 1999 . Primary education covers ages six to twelve. Ninety-three percent of children enter primary school and about one-quarter drop out after the sixth year; in 1994-95, 87% entered primary school and about half dropped out after the sixth year. PREPARATORY EDUCATION The preparatory phase is three years, for ages twelve to fifteen. SECONDARY EDUCATION Secondary education consists of three different types: general, technical, and vocational. General Secondary Education This type of secondary education extends over three years, of which the first serves as a preparatory year for the other two. In this first year the student studies both humanistic and scientific subjects. At the end of the year, and on the basis of his or her grades, the student enters one of three streams in which he will study for the next two years: humanistic, scientific, or mathematical, each with its specific curricular focus, although some subjects, such as Arabic and religious education, are taught in all streams. At the end of final two year, students sit for a highly centeralized final exams. Depending on the student's score on these exams, the student chooses the university the student wishes to continues the post-secondary stage. A new Secondary Education system is being proposed and in a current advanced stage of planning. The new system has many similarities with the American High School Diploma providing more choices in the student in choosing the academic courses. Technical Secondary Education Technical education, which is given in three-year and five-year programs, includes schools in three different fields: industrial, commercial, and agricultural. Vocational Secondary Education Technical education, which is given in three-year and five-year programs, includes schools in three different fields: industrial, commercial, and agricultural. AZHARITE EDUCATION SYSTEM The Azharite education system is supervised by the Supreme Council of the Al-Azhar Institution and is independent from the Ministry Of Education . But the Al-Azhar Institution itself is placed under government supervision, and its educational system is actually supervised by the Egyptian Prime Minister . The Al-Azhar schools are named "Institutes" and include primary, preparatory, and secondary phases. All schools in all phases teach non-religious subjects, to a certain degree, although not as intensively as the state schools. The bulk of the curriculum, however, consists of religious subjects as described below. All the students are Muslim, and males and females are separated in all phases. The Azharite schools are spread all over the country, especially in rural areas. The graduates of the Azharite secondary schools are eligible to continue their studies at the Al-Azhar University only. The Azharite schools accounted in the early 2000s for less than 4 % of the total enrollment. POST SECONDARY EDUCATION ''Main Article: Egyptian Universities '' There are both private and public institutions of higher education in Egypt . Public Higher education is free in Egypt, and Egyptian students only pay registeration fees. Private Education is much more expensive. Major universities include Cairo University (100,000 students), Alexandria University , and the 1,000-year-old Al-Azhar University , one of the world's major centers of Islam ic learning. TYPES OF SCHOOLS Government Schools Generally speaking, there are two types of government schools: Arabic Schools, Experimental Language Schools.
Private Schools Generally speaking, there are three types of private schools: Ordinary Schools, Language Schools, and Religious Schools.
Some of these schools provide French or German as their main language of instruction, in addition to another second foreign language. Many of the private schools were built by Missionaries and are affiliated with churches and provide quality education. Many private schools offer additional educational programs, along with the National curriculum such as the American High School Diploma , the British IGCSE system, the French Baccalauréat , the German Abitur and the International Baccalaureate .
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